life is art

Living through a life is an art. From the time of our birth, the nurturing we received, the way we responded to those caring for us and thoughts that formed in our minds based on our perception of the world, our reactions to these and subsequent stand we take in deciding what type of character we want to adopt - all these are art because the artist, the soul has deliberately made its mark on one's life.
How do we showcase these artform that is our life? How do we display this art product so that it serves as a reminder to another person?

Iskandar Malaysia Contemporary Art Show (IMCAS)

The three month Iskandar Malaysia Contemporary Art Show (IMCAS) which started in Johor Bahru on March 14, is the biggest exhibition of Malaysian contemporary artists in the country todate.
Visiting the exhibition held on the 4th level of the newly opened Danga City Mall, enlightened me about the true extant of contemporary art in the country. Previously not having seen all the works at one venue, I had been rather confused as to what Malaysian artists were doing these days.
What I saw at IMCAS was an eye-opener for me and my confidence in Malaysian art grew tremendously seeing the exciting way our artists from Yusof Ghani, Hamir Soib, husband and wife artists Choy Chun Wei and Yau Bee Ling, Bayu Utomo and Jeganathan Ramachandram are moving.
Those wishing to become art collectors should check out the special booths set up at the Art Fair for budding Malaysian artists. They can pick out good quality original works for as low as a couple of hundred ringgit.
In conjunction with IMCAS, an open category Art Competition will be held to unearth new talents.
A residency programme for about 12 young artists will be held throughout the duration of the exhibition with a road show to popularise their works.

the wiping out of the majestic Malayan tiger

I am working on a follow-up article on tiger conservation in the country. Yesterday an article appeared on the seizure of tiger carcasses seized the previous day from a lorry in Thailand believed to have come from Malaysia. The article carried a picture showing the Thai wildlife authorities holding up two severed tiger heads while the carcasses of two adult tigers lay in front of them. There also appeared to be a carcass of a young tiger cub. It was a shocking picture seeing the majestic beasts that rule the thick equatorial forests of Malaysia lying dead. The seizure of the tiger carcasses was just one of the many cases of wild animal smuggling in Malaysia that had been reported in the media over the past few weeks. Even today there was an article on the seizure of snake skins from smugglers in Malaysia. The growing trade in wild animal parts in the country is indicative of the Government's lack lustre commitment towards the conservation of its rich environment and biodiversity. The general attitude of the Government including the State Governments is that the country is blessed with plentiful jungle areas and biodiversity, that there will be enough to go around despite poaching and any amount of environmental abuse. Also the lust of present day political leaders to enrich themselves, their families and cronies at whatever cost has caused them to be party to the unscrupulous syndicate of poachers and animal part traders. The Government is even sitting on a much needed revision of the Wildlife Protection Act 1972 which allows poachers to get away with a mere RM5,000 fine if caught by the authorities and charged. The move to revise this act began about five years ago and nothing has come of it todate. Fed-up with the Government's attitude, TRAFFIC Southeast Asia, an international NGO set up by animal conservationists to stop the trade in wild animal parts has started a signature petition calling on the Government to act fast in revising the said Act. My article today is to get to the bottom of this disgraceful stand of the Government in not showing a commitment towards wildlife conservation. Hope this article turns out well and delivers the intended impact.

welcoming 2009

The birth of 2009. A new beginning for me, my family and everyone around us. The indications are there. A lot of changes have occured over the past two months and most telling is the impact on me. My mother's death on Nov 16 was the final chapter of my personal development, having thrust me into the world to fend for the needs, of loved ones and progressively of more and more people in my growing circle.
What I do in the remaining years of my life will have to be a day-to-day charting of progressive movement with never a day to be wasted in idleness as my duties keep growing each other day.
For it is the prerogative of an artist to promptly deliver his contributions to society without fail after his material dues are fulfilled.

talkative one instance

I find myself extremely chatty today. wish I could translate all that chattiness into writing as generally I suffer from writer's block. But once I start the writing, the flow if uninterrupted by reasoning is incessant and gems spill out. How I wish I can write the same way I talk.
I'm amazed that some writers actually can complete writing a short story or even a mini novel at one sitting. I think they must have learnt the art of spontaneously capturing their flowing thoughts without letting it spill into chatter or empty reminiscence.
I guess these writers have mastered the art of stilling the physical body just like a yogi, into total inaction (except for the fingers that is) to unleash and spontaneously record their flow of thoughts.
If I were able to do that I would already have been the author of numerous books by now. As it is I am the to-be author of numerous just-begun and in-progress manuscripts lying in my files and batched within my `to-do' paperbag.

art - the cream of civilisation.

The modern civilisation that started in the 19th Century is a pseudo civilisation as it has produced no great art. What we revere as art in this age is the rantings and ravings of persecuted artists. Instead of rising to spiritual heights on reaching the climax of their work, serious modern artists mostly end up ruining their lives, both physically and mentally. Of course the not serious pretenders survive and flourish in wealth and fame, adding to the chaos of the age.
At the very beginning of this civilisation, there were the dying breed of artists who managed to leave behind some great works like the Renaissance artists and the overshadowed spiritualists of the great traditions such as Indian, Mayan, Egyptian and African, Chinese, Indo-Chinese and every other pre-modern civilisation of the world.
The growth of industries spurred by the spread of European colonial rule categorically destroyed every existing genuine civilisation of the world. The overwhelming greed and lust of the sensual and passionate European and later American populations and their leaders unleashed a populist wave of materialism throughout the world whitewashing the human psyche and standardising human art and culture.
This is the colourless world that we have now inherited.

artistic soul

Can art reach the spirit soul? It certainly would, good art that is. What is art after all if not a spiritual expression especially considering that the essence of the spirit is absolute truth. Is not art concerned solely with absolute truth. Besides the fact that the expression of art is the language of the subtle mind or subconscious which is the vehicle of the soul.

Thus we can say that artists are pure spirit souls, unattached to the material world. We can go one step further and categorise them as transcendentalists who according to the 18th CenturyTamil poet, Subramani Bharathiar (Bharathiar or persona of Mother India) observed that while Subramani was a poor man, Bharatiar was beyond the human condition being seated on a pedestal and watching over the world. It was also Bharatiar who referred to himself as being an immortal.